Mechanime: Gundam Wing

This anime passes just shy of flying colors. Get it? Wings? Flying?
...I'll be quiet now.

Original Run: 1995-1996

Number of Episodes: 49

Average Episode Length: 21-22 minutes

Subgenres: War

Dub?: Yes

What is up, my lovely people? Today I’ll be reviewing my first Gundam anime. As per usual, this is not a review of the entire anime, but just the first group of episodes. Let’s get started!

Opening

The opening of Gundam Wing, titled “Just Communication”, is probably one of the most average openings I’ve listened to. Its not the worse song, but it didn’t catch my interest at all. Quite frankly, I found the song to be boring and droning, which is something you don’t want your song to be. The worst part is that its probably the weakest part of an otherwise great soundtrack. Rather than being the show’s magnum opus or even the show’s hook, the opening is just there.

Story

Our heroes. Or as much as heroes child soldiers can be.

In the distant future, mankind has set up orbital colonies around Earth. However, the United Earth Sphere Alliance, an alliance set up to prevent armed conflict, begin seizing control of these colonies in the name of peace. The year is After Colony 195, and colonist rebels send five advance mobile suits (known as “Gundams” after the material they are named after) to Earth in hopes of winning their independence. Their target is the Organization of the Zodiac (referred to as OZ), a part of the Alliance military that have ambitious plans for the Earth and its colonies…

These people are the villains. Proving once again that evil is the more attractive side.

The story of this show is actually really good. It has several elements of political intrigue that kept me interested in the story. Its tale of a new order fighting the old guard, as well as the many battles fought in the name in peace is a great one, and is quite well told. Its a bit heavy handed with its antiwar message, and even though a lot is done in each episode, it feels like very little actually happens. While on the slow side, the story of Gundam Wing is probably the best reason to watch the show.

Characters

So we’re back to having ginormous casts again. Get a piece of paper ready. Ready?

The Gundam pilots. From left to right: Quatre, Trowa, Heero, Duo, and Wufei.

The rebels include Heero, a stoic killer trained since childhood, Duo, an upbeat  soldier, Trowa, a stoic and strategic marksman, Quatre, a rich and peace-loving boy, and Wufei, a young warrior. They use their Gundams to fight against OZ, led by Treize, a brilliant schemer. Serving him are Colonel Zechs, your obligatory masked character (seriously, every Gundam anime has one), Lieutenant Noin, a pilot trainer, and Lady Une, the right hand (wo)man to Treize. There’s also Relena, a girl that has a fascination with Heero.

Treize, the main villain of the series. His name means "thirteen," which is actually quite fitting.

The cast of Gundam Wing is pretty damn big, and unfortunately, a good deal with them are just plain uninteresting. Sure, Duo is pretty entertaining, and I really like Quatre, but Heero is far more boring than badass, Wufei is more insufferable than sympathetic, and Trowa is just there. Relena is completely pointless, and could easily be written out after the first few episodes. Fortunately the villains make up for it, and are easily more interesting than any of the rebels. Overall, I thought the cast was lackluster, and I couldn’t get into the characters as I did the story.

Writing

The writing of Gundam Wing is pretty mixed. For the most part, it tells its story well, and it at least tries to develop its characters. Its biggest weakness is how it tries to handle its anti-war message. While it does depict how war can have unintended consequences, it's also morally simplistic; the bad guys are clearly bad and the good guys are clearly good. While I have to give it some credit for tackling subjects live regional autonomy and freedom vs security, the way its written isn’t exactly stellar.

Animation

Not the most jaw dropping of fights, but I appreciate how the robots were animated.

For a 90s anime, this is very well animated. Sure, it recycles its animation occasionally, and its a bit explosion heavy, but its the right mix of colorful and drab, and the characters move enough to avoid looking choppy. I also have to give it major points for having its giant robots move like giant robots; the movements are slow and deliberate, and their mobility is actually pretty limited. Its not the greatest piece of animation, but its still a great looking anime.

Mecha and Fight Scenes

The grunt mobile suit for OZ, the Leo. The OZ suits look practical without looking boring.

The mecha of the Gundam series are referred to as “mobile suits,” but not all mobile suits are Gundams. In Gundam Wing, the Gundams are all made of a special alloy called gundanium, which can only be made in space-like conditions. In either case, the mech design in this anime is excellent. The non-Gundam mobile suits look pragmatic without looking boring, and the Gundams look very colorful and appealing without going overboard (well, for the most part).

Gundam Heavyarms is best Gundam.

The fights are not so much “fights” as they are “battles.” Each battle is either between OZ and the forces that oppose them, or between the Gundams (often just one or two) and OZ. Either way, most suits don’t last long at all, as grunt suits are blown to smithereens by incoming fire (you know, like an actual mas produce weapon would). The Gundams easily plow through OZ suits, and its always fun to watch them do so. Even though I feel that these battles are great, they work to undermine the whole anti-war message. Still, the battles of this show are the other big reason to watch this anime.

Conclusion

Gundam Wing definitely has its shortcomings. Its characters are pretty weak, and its too heavy handed in its pro-pacifist/anti-war message. However, its balanced out by great villains, an intriguing story, and great battles. This is definitely worth a watch if you like giant robots.

7.5/10 - Really Good

Note: I know content has been coming out at a trickle, but school is taking priority right now. The good news is that I’m almost done with my “to-do” slate and ready for new shows! Best thing you can do is be patient (and maybe leave a comment, that always helps).

J-Decker is up next. Pull over!

Liberal Rant: Indiana's Religious Freedom Law

Back in 1993, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act was signed into law. The law says that the government cannot "substantially burden a person's exercise of religion." In other words, under the RFRA, if a person has sincere religious objections to a law, then he or she can challenge it in court. Today, 21 states have passed similar laws. With all this in mind, it seems hard to object to what Indiana is doing, at least from a legal standpoint. Some have even gone as to say that Indiana’s law is basically the same as the OB (“original bill,” for those not hip to today’s legal lingo), and that objections are ill-founded.

But if that were the case, then there wouldn’t be this huge backlash. Indiana’s RFRA is quite different. The most notable difference between the two is that every other RFRA only covers disputes between an individual or group and the government, whereas the Indiana law extends this right to object to disputes between private citizens. And by citizens, I don’t just mean actual people; the law can extend to any organization, partnership, LLC, corporation, company, firm, church, religious society, and what have you. This broadens the scope of the law immensely, and ultimately means that any individual or group can deny service to certain people on religious grounds.

The Indiana law is a solution in search of a problem. Even if we take possible discrimination out the equation, its still a law that addresses an issue that’s practically non-existent. The citizens of Indiana never really had their religious rights attacked. I could understand the need for such a law if there were precedent, but at the moment, this law seems to create more problems than it solves. It allows businesses to deny services to certain customers (not just gays, but also potentially Jews, Muslims, and even Christians), and it allows those businesses to hide behind religious freedom as justification.

I don’t hate religious freedom. I think the ability to practice your religion of choice without government interference is an important civil right. But using religion as an excuse to not treat all people equally is not exercising religious freedom; that’s discrimination. While I’m all for protecting religious rights, I also think its important to protect general civil rights. And its not like you can’t do both; the original RFRA does so. As it stands, the Indiana law aims to protect religious rights by allowing others to violate the civil rights of people they don’t like. Essentially, we have a law that prioritizes religious rights over some people’s civil rights, which is not something you should be proud over.

I’m so glad the Indiana law got this much backlash. A law like this has no place in modern America. Hopefully the bill will be replaced with something more sensible.

Some bad news...

Guys, I have a bit of bad news for you guys. Up until now, I was able to easily balance this blog and work at school. Now, school is stepping it up a bit. So until I can clear up my backlog of work, this blog will be on hiatus. Sorry.

But don't fret; I have plenty of material for when I come back!

-Sentai Time! Movie review double feature
-Mechanime: Gundam Wing
-Liberal Rant: Religious freedom laws
-Sentai Time! Kyoryuger follow-up

Hope you guys understand. Until then, see ya.

Press Start: Megaman X Command Mission Review

Battle Networks forgotten, awkward younger brother.

Developers: Capcom Production Studio 3

Publishers: Capcom

Genre: RPG

Platforms: GameCube, Playstation 2

Well, this is a weird one. I considered doing a Gamer’s Frontier on this one, but honestly, I didn’t like it enough to consider it a hidden gem. That’s not to say it isn’t a good game, but it has some issues that prevent it from being a truly great game. Let’s find out why that is.

Story and Concept

As per usual, the fate of the world is in the hands of a ragtag group of weirdos. How come this keeps working?

In terms of the Megaman X canon, this takes place long after the events in the main series games. X and a small group of Maverick Hunters are sent to Giga City, an artificial island built to mine and smelt an advanced material known as Force Metal, to subdue a rebellion. When one of X’s fellow hunters betrays them, the rebellion leader, a Maverick named Epsilon, attacks and separates the group of Hunters. Separated from his friends, X has no choice but assemble his own resistance group of local Reploids to fight against the rebel army.

One of the bad guys, who's been trained for battle. How come these guys never win?

If you were confused by the above story introduction, then that’s probably because you’re not a Megaman X fan (that or I’m a terrible writer). This game is mostly meant for followers of the series, and I had to do a bit of research to get familiar with the in-game terminology. That said, the entry barrier is pretty low, and you can still enjoy this simple tale of good and evil without having played any previous Megaman X game. I also have to say that the original characters for this game are fairly interesting and enjoyable, and fit in with the Megaman X canon (at least with the little I know).

Graphic and Design

A bit rough around the edges, but still a solid looking game nonetheless.

For a PS2 game, Command Mission looks very good. The character models look very good, if not a bit jagged, and they mesh well with the chosen artstyle. It definitely looks like a Megaman game in 3D. The enemy design is also very good, with lots of colors and a good deal of creativity behind some of them. However, I do have to complain about the dungeons. They look very simple, and most times, it doesn’t deviate from being basic. While I think Command Mission is a fine looking game, it could use a bit more complexity in its dungeons.

Sound and Music

While I think the characters are well designed, I can’t say the same for their voicework. For the most part, its painfully mediocre, even underachieving in some places. The voice acting isn’t Arc Rise Fantasia level bad, but its not very good either. The music is pretty good though. The soundtrack is mostly electronic, and it has a decent collection of tunes that, while not as memorable as the main series Megaman X themes, are still pleasing to the ears. The sound in this game isn’t the greatest, but it does its job well enough to avoid being grating.

Gameplay

Sample battle.

Command Mission isn’t your typical Megaman X game. Rather than being a fast paced action platformer, its a turn based RPG. You control X and his allies as you explore dungeons, blast baddies for experience and zenny (in-game currency), and participate in good ol’ turned based combat. Sounds pretty standard, but there are a few combat mechanics that makes this stand out from your typical RPG (besides starring Megaman).

Sample battle. Sub-weapons can be triggered with either the Square or Circle button.

For starters, each party member can equip two sub-weapons, specialized attacks that consume Weapon Energy (basically MP). While weaker than your regular attack, these sub-weapons add an extra layer of strategy to battle. Party members can also equip Force Metal, which can do things like modify stats, add immunities and resistances, and can even allow for resurrections when killed by an enemy. While not the deepest customization system, sub-weapons and Force Metal add a lot to an otherwise simple combat system.

X's Action Trigger. In this case, you hold the X button and release for a powerful spreadshot.

Each party member also has access to a Hyper Mode and Action Trigger. Action Triggers are special attacks that require specific inputs (for Massimo, you mash buttons, for Marino, you spin reels, etc). Hyper Modes are special forms party members can temporarily take that increase their stats and, in some cases, give them new Action Triggers. Like Force Metal, these mechanics add a layer of strategy to the battle system, and they make the game feel very Megaman-y, especially the Hyper Modes.

Boss fights can take forever, even with their weakness exploited.

However, this game has some pretty big downfalls. For one thing, the dungeon design is less than impressive. They’re very linear and there’s not much incentive to explore unless you want every single item. The encounter rate is incredibly high, with fights triggered sometimes a few seconds seconds after you just won one. And while the combat system is fairly enjoyable, the boss fights are more tedious than they are challenging. All these things drag down the experience, but fortunately they do not overshadow the good.

Verdict

Command Mission is not a bad game, but its shortcomings prevent it from being a great RPG. If you’re a Megaman X fan or if you’re a hardcore RPG enthusiast, then you’d probably like the game. If you aren’t, then you won’t be missing much if you skip it.

6.5/10 - Decent

Agree? Disagree? Feel free to leave a comment! Constructive criticism is always welcome.

Weapon of the Week

Aren't they the most adorable tools of total cataclysm? 

Franchise: Golden Sun

Appearances: Golden Sun, Golden Sun: The Lost Age, Golden Sun: Dark Dawn

Type: Sidekick/Power-up

Golden Sun is one of Nintendo’s forgotten franchises that I really wish they’d revisit. Sure, the writing wasn’t the best, but the games had creative worlds, great music, and amazing visuals. But what really makes me miss Golden Sun is the gameplay. Sure, on the surface, it looks likes your standard turn-based RPG- menu based combat, casting spells, defeating monsters for experience points, etc. However, one thing that truly makes Golden Sun stands out are adorable little spirits that can augment your characters abilities.

In Golden Sun, you control a group of youths that are able to use a special type of magic called psynergy. Using their minds, these youths, or adepts, can manipulate the four elements to do things like accelerate plant growth or create fireballs. Psynergy is used as in battle spells and to solve puzzles in the game’s dungeons. While most adepts can learn psynergy naturally, most of their power comes from elemental spirits that hide themselves all over the world: Djinn.

Djinn come in four varieties: Venus (earth), Mars (fire), Jupiter (wind), and Mercury (water). Djinn can be equipped by adepts once they are found. Depending on what Djinn the adept has equipped, his or stats can change dramatically and even learn new psynergy to use in battle. Djinn can also be used to activate unique psynergy, and if enough Djinn are on standby, they can pool their energy to perform powerful summon spells. Djinn are the greatest part of Golden Sun, as they allow for deep customization and a flexible battle system.

Next time, we’ll look at one of the most unlikely swords in video games. Until then, see ya.

Liberal Rant: Ted Cruz

Texas is a reliable red anchor, which makes me want to pull my hair out sometimes. In my head, most Texan politicians should be laughed out of the building, yet they are received with open arms and thunderous approval. This is especially the case with Ted Cruz; I thought he would be crushed in his senatorial race, but was elected by an enormous margin. He’s made several statements that should be mocked, but he’s now considered a major figure among hardcore conservatives.

And now he’s running for president. Wonderful.

But this isn’t a post about how Ted Cruz says stupid things. That is honestly a dead horse (or in this case a dead elephant). This isn’t about how Cruz is not a good candidate or that he has no chance of winning the nomination, let alone the presidency. Those dead horses are about to be beaten. This post is about how scary Ted Cruz is as a Republican force. He may just be a one term senator, but his goals make me cringe.

Cruz has openly said several times that he’s not only waging war against Democrats, but also against moderate Republicans. Those in the “mushy middle” (which is probably the dumbest term since “lamestream media”), according to him, are simply not conservative enough to make America the best it could be. He wants to win without the help of the moderates, as he sees them as destructive to the conservative cause. In other words, he wants to see the Republican party move further to the right.

The Republican party moving further right is a scary thought. For one thing, moderate Republicans are the ones getting things done in Congress. The grandstanding, political point scorers like Cruz are the ones blocking legislation and killing bills. Their moderate counterpoints, who are actually willing to work with Democrats on some things, are needed now more than ever. Moving further to the right means that the moderates will be wiped out, and that Congress will be more inactive and polarized than ever.

The Republican party veering further to the right also means a more destructive party mentality. Cruz and his allies are not interested in governing; they are interested in tearing things down. Cruz has already pledged himself to repealing Obamacare, and I doubt that’s not the only thing on his chopping block. The thing is we don’t need destroyers right now; rolling things back is the last thing we need. We need bipartisanship, and if Cruz succeeds in his bid to wipe out moderates, then that word is as good as gone.

Cruz is very unlikely to win, but him winning is not what I’m concerned with. I’m much more concerned with his bid to wipe the Republican middle, and the repercussions we’ll face if he succeeds.

Sentai Time! Engine Sentai Go-Onger

Pressing down the road of mediocrity.

Translation: Engine Squad Go-On Ranger

Number of Episodes: 50

Original Run: 2008-2009

Theme: Vehicle/Animal hybrids and technology

Adaptation: Power Rangers RPM

Welcome back to Sentai Time! This time, I’ll be reviewing Engine Sentai Go-Onger, and sadly, I’m more interested in tearing it down rather than praising it. Let’s get started.

The Concept

These guys literally fight pollution. Its exactly as existing as it sounds.

Our universe exists in 11 Braneworlds, alternate dimensions layer on top of each other. One such world is Engine World, populated by Engines, animal/vehicle hybrids that wage war against the Bankizoku Gaiark (translated as “Barbaric Machine Tribe Gaiark”). The Gaiark are chased out of Engine World and escape to Human World (Earth), and plan to pollute Earth to suit their race. To prevent this, several Engines travel to Human World and ally themselves with strong-willed humans, who borrow their power to become the Go-Ongers. Together they wish to stop the mechanical menace from dirtying the beautiful blue planet.

The Sentai

From left to right: Hanto, Ren, Sousuke, Saki, and Gunpei.

The Go-Ongers consist of Sousuke (Go-On Red), a fiery former auto racer, Ren (Go-On Blue), the encyclopedic cook and former bus driver, Saki (Go-On Yellow), an optimistic girl who dreams of opening her own sweets shop, Hanto (Go-On Green), an easily distractible job-hopper, and Gunpei (Go-On Black), a former cop with a tough guy facade. Each have a Engine partner, who are similar in personality and give the Go-Ongers their gear and powers.

Imagine this shoved into your face for 22 minutes at a time. Not very pleasant.

The sentai of Go-Onger is, quite frankly, annoying. Everything they do is preformed with this sort of cartoony energy, which makes nearly every action they perform over-the-top and obnoxious. I understand this is still Super Sentai, but the Kyoryugers managed to be energetic without causing migraines thanks to good (or at least better) writing and more subtle moments to break up the hyperactive moments. It also doesn’t help that the cast don’t make endearing characters: Sousuke is a hardheaded brat, Hanto is an annoying twit, and Gunpei is more of a jerk than a jerk with a heart of gold. This is a very weak sentai, and are about as deep as their merchandise.

The Villains

From left to right: Yogostein, Kegareshia, and Kitaneidas.

The Gaiark are made up of Yogostein, Kegareshia, and Kitaneidas, the Ministers of Land, Water, and Air Pollution respectively. They wish to pollute Human World so that their race can live in a filthy paradise. To do so, the Ministers create Bankijyu (or “Barbaric Machine Beasts”) to create havoc and dirty either the Earth’s land, water, or air. Alongside their Bankijyu, the Ministers command armies of junk soldiers and entire fleets of flying walker mechs.

This isn't an outlier; all the monsters look this stupid.

I dislike the Gaiark almost as much the Go-Ongers. The Ministers are terribly bland, and I have trouble naming character traits for them other than how they end their sentences. The Bankijyu are even worse. They are all based on machines found on Earth, and by based on, I mean they slapped some arms and legs on some machines and added goofy faces. The designs are lazy, and I found them far more stupid than threatening. The Gaiark have a decent concept behind them, but are drowning in either blandness or stupidity.

The Mecha

One of the better looking mechs, in my opinion.

The Engines are all animal/vehicle hybrids: for example, Sousuke’s Engine is Speedor, a racecar-condor combo. The individual Engines can combine into mecha to take down giant Bankijyu. In the thirteen episodes I’ve watched, there are three mechs: Engine-O (pictured), Ganbaru-O, and Engine-O G6 (a combination of Engine-O and Ganbaru-O).

This is Speedor. As you can see, he's going through a bit of an identity crisis.

While I did like the concept of a race of sentient vehicles that look like animals, I found the Engines to be just as flat and boring as the rest of the characters. They are often carbon copies of their human partner’s personalities, and it also doesn’t help that they have annoying verbal ticks of their own. The mecha they form are pretty awesome, however, and their theme songs make the fights epic, even if they are often one sided.

The Fights

How come the most annoying member of the cast gets the coolest weapon?

The fights are some of the few redeeming features of the show. They aren’t as impressive or as well choreographed as the fights in Kyoryuger or Shinkenger, and it may use shaky-cam a bit too much, but they are still very solid. One thing I have noticed, however, is that this series uses a lot of flashy effects, often more than the other Sentais I’ve mentioned. Still, the fights look impressive and do a decent job of showcasing the individual strengths of the individual Go-Ongers.

The Music

The music also saves the show from being terrible. The music is not only fun to listen too, but its also pretty darn catchy. I especially like the instrumental of the theme song, which gives off a mariachi/surfer vibe. In terms of music, I’d place Go-Onger between Kyoryuger and Shinkenger- not as good as the former, but more memorable than the latter.

The Engrish

They all wear jackets like this. Its quite painful.

I just had to bring this up. This show constantly abuses the English language by throwing in tons of English words into each episode. I know Sentai shows often feature engrish (even Shinkenger had it), but the frequency of which Go-Onger uses it is grating. Its hard to not roll your eyes whenever an English word is thrown into the middle of a sentence, and it just doesn’t stop. It feels more like “we’re cool too, guys!” rather than a stylistic choice.

The Verdict

I know Super Sentai is meant for kids, but that didn’t stop me from enjoying Kyoryuger and Shinkenger, mainly because it was competently made. Go-Onger may be lighthearted, but often its too hyperactive and in-your-face. The cast is largely forgettable and annoying, the villains are lame, and I often found myself stomaching it rather than enjoying it. I wouldn’t consider Go-Onger a good show, or even a good kids’ show.

4/10 - Below Average

That should do it. I’m preparing for my first Sentai movie review (Gaburincho of Music), as well as a followup for Shinkenger. Until then, see ya.

Magiranger is up next.